The Pheline of the Opera
by Maxniss Everide
Summary: What happens when Erik invites Raoul over only to accidently drink the magic poison that was meant for the Vicomte? What if- say- this poison turned Erik into a cat? Will he be taken in by Christine, who still has not yet wed? Will she even know it's him?
1. The Wrong Dinner Plate

**So you know how I'm writing "COUNT UP WITH ERIK"? Yea, good, then you know that I'm trying not to be hypocritical and not write stuff. Here's a story that you might get a laugh out of. Updates might not be recent, since I have a billion priorities right now. Thanks! And enjoy :)**

_**Erik's POV**_

Oh this is despicable, utterly embarrassing!

How can I even assume that anyone would take me in after all that happened, after all that I have done to them? How could I even think that I can just come crawling back to Christine after all that I have done to her? Why oh why cruel fate has this happened to me? Of all the tricks that I have ever done, _this _one had to backfire on me.

* * *

It was quite a simple trick actually. All I had tried to do was turn Raoul de Chagny into a macaw. Yes, a macaw, to show how foppish he truly is since those birds have the most extravagant colors. I had invited him for dinner and put the poison in his food. It was not my fault; that is for certain. The foolish de Chagny had to distract me by playing with my Punjab lasso. He was tossing it around and examining it, pulling it around the mannequin when I was setting the table. I had to finally approach him and take the thing away from him, since he obviously did not know that he could damage one of my possessions with it. Of course I had to threaten him to give it back, saying, "Monsieur de Chagny, I assure you that if you do not hand me what is mine, you will soon find yourself wearing it while hanging from the ceiling."

It did the trick. Immediately, he threw the lasso to me and I caught it one-handed, hardly even moving from where I stood. However, I did have to move when I noticed that he had scratched the mannequin while he was playing with the Punjab. I took my cloak and rubbed the spot with it, hissing at the Vicomte when he came near. He would never touch her again, ever.

It was only after we sat down and finished the meal that I realized that I sat in the spot that he was supposed to sit in. If he had not distracted me, it never would have happened! I silently cursed under my breathe and forced the de Chagny boy to leave my presence (in which I actually am proud to say that he did not suspect a thing and that he seemed utterly confused and afraid by my commanding him to leave). Once he left, I swiftly hurried to where I kept the poison and found the wine bottle in which the powder for it was kept. The bottle was empty now since I had poured all of it into the Vicomte's food, which I had accidently eaten. It wasn't the bird poison, though, it was-

I felt my body being dragged in a thousand different directions before I could read the label. Oh the pain was indescribable but it was over soon enough. My clothes lay on the floor beside me and I fell into a deep sleep.

Hours later, I woke from this slumber and tried to lift myself from the ground. I yawned and stretched, not quite remembering what had become of me. Surely, all of it had been a dream. Why would I invite the de Chagny over to my domain for dinner? How would I be such a fool as to actually consume my own poison…?

I opened my eyes, and to my horror, I found not hands stretched before me, but claws. They weren't a falcon's or an eagle's talons, but they were simpler than that. I walked on all fours and my rough tongue could feel sharp teeth in my mouth. Attempting to stay calm, I rushed to a table and glanced up at it. Without thinking, I leapt onto it and studied myself in the mirror.

My suspicions were confirmed. I had short pointed ears and narrowed yellow eyes. Black fur covered my whole body, for my natural hair color was black. I had the shortest whiskers that I had ever seen on any beast and I curled my long black tail around me as I sat. Naturally, I still appeared to be only skin and bones. I was quite a remarkable thing, though it was not doubt utterly annoying. I had transformed myself into a cat.

I glared at my reflection irritably when I stared into my cat face. To my dismay, this one thing could not have changed. Matted fur covered my face along with scars and lost fur to go with it. My mouth was misshapen on one side and even as an animal, I had no nose. Red flesh could be seen under my right eye. Silently I cursed. Even as a cat, I could not escape my deformity, though as a human, it was much worse than this.

"Now look what you've done to yourself, Erik", I chided myself. Somewhat surprised that I could still speak French as a cat, I leapt back in surprise. I even tried a few other languages, such as German and Persian. I was only a cat in form only, not in mind.

Sighing, I reached with one of my cat paws to the button to one of my trapdoors. As long as I was the size of a cat, it would be the perfect chance to search the little nooks that I could never explore as a human.

The only problem was that I couldn't reach the button. I jumped higher; the button was too high. Curse my cat paws! I needed someone else to open the trap door. Momentarily, I wondered when the potion would wear off. I remembered never making a remedy for this, believing there never to be a need to, since it wouldn't last forever. I shook my head knowing that it would wear off in its own good time and that all I needed to worry about was how to still run my opera while in cat form.

Then it hit me. It was the worst possible idea to ever come into my mind, but at that moment, I realized that I needed outside help- literally.

What of the trap doors? I couldn't escape my lair through those! Another means of escape needed to be taken. With cat poise, I leaped from the table onto the chair beside it and from there to the floor. My eyes narrowed into slits as I considered my options.

Obviously, there was the lake, which seemed so ominous to me now that I was in smaller form.

"It is merely nothing, Erik", I reassured myself, but as I neared, my anxiety grew. Reaching into the water with my paw, I shuddered back, splashing droplets off of my paw back into the water.

"Erik cannot swim in such a huge lake, what was he thinking? MEOW!"

Breathing heavily on the other side of my lair, I stared wide-eyed at the monstrosity that I considered overcoming. At that moment, I realized that many cat attributes were becoming me. I had to fight the beast within.

I crawled back further into the corner until I heard the creak of a board beneath my foot. I jumped at the noise, but glanced back to find what I had been searching for- a passageway.

Relieved, I crawled through the cat-sized tunnel, grateful that I hadn't repaired this hole earlier. Rats kept infiltrating my lair so many times before this way that I had needed to block it. Apparently, they had gnawed through the wood that was supposed to temporarily keep them out.

Stopping in my tracks, I realized that rats could overcome me at any moment. However, I needed to keep on going, so I didn't stop.

Scuttling came from behind me, and my steps quickened. The sooner I got out of those rat-infested passages, the easier my situation would become. A few rats appear behind me, biting at my feet.

Suddenly, I'm stopped by a rat with its ears almost torn to shreds, its tail mangled and beaten by years of hardship.

_So the strange creature who tried to block our passageway finally decided to come to our level._

How was I able to understand this rodent? It said nothing, yet it said everything by its movements and noises.

I stand tall and glare at it. It glares back

_Do you dare challenge me, monster? Get out of our domain and go back to where you came from!_

I try to answer it, but I find that I cannot speak rat. All I can speak are the human languages that I have learned throughout my lifetime. I know nothing of animals.

Catching the rodent off-guard, I swipe my paw at it, tossing it aside to the edge of the passage. I leap over it and run hard on all four paws searching for some opening to escape the rats.

I hear a melody pure and sweet wafer into the passageways, entrancing me for a moment, almost causing me to slow down.

"_Daylight_

_Say that you are the sunflower_

_And a rose that is fading_

_Roses wither away_

_Like the sunflower_

_I yearn to turn my face to the dawn_

_I am waiting_

_For the day"_

Christine, it was my angel for certain. Only her voice could sound so perfect, so angelic. I remembered that piece from somewhere… it was by a composer that I have come to despise, but coming from her, it sounded so sweet. I rushed towards the sound.

_Come back here, creature of the dark. You do not belong here, _the rat threatened me. It was beside me, but I swiftly knocked it out of my way.

_You know nothing of the dark, much less of love, _I growled at it, surprising myself. Did I just speak in some feline language to a rat? I needed to be around people before I was completely transformed.

Unfortunately, the music was gone, therefore leaving me no trail to find my love. I closed my eyes momentarily. I knew the opera house by heart, so why couldn't I find my way to the stage?

A light burst through a crack and I could hear Firmin's voice praise the new prima donna, "Magnificent, Christine! You have the lead!"

"Bravo!" Andre shouted.

The crack was much too small for me to fit into. The rats still stalked me, still foolish enough to believe that I was still their prey. I screeched at them, sending them to shriek in terror. Many of them ran away, though still a few lingered beside me.

Could they be my temporary minions? I've never had minions before.

_Open this crack, _I commanded them. They stood there, not doing anything I asked. _I've seen you do this a thousand times before, you little beasts! Do it now or I'll claw your eyes out!_

Suddenly, the little creatures began scraping at the mortar widening the crack. They opened it much quicker than I would have been able to. When they were almost finished, I pushed my way through them and squeezed through the hole. When I was through, I looked back and stared into the little scrunched up faces. The rats were ugly, but somehow, I saw myself reflected through them. I gave them a look of gratitude and they scurried off.

I turned toward the stage, but my Christine was not there. For a moment, I panicked. Where had she gone? Then I saw the two fool managers that ran my opera.

"No notes tonight", Andre whispered to Firmin gleefully as they packed shuffled out of my theater.

Firmin answered gruffly, "Humph, Andre, you'll catch his attention and he _will _write us a note. I'd rather we wait until we've left to discuss our luck."

Now if I weren't in cat form I'm sure that I would have written them a note right then. I was planning to write about what my theater's next opera should be, but since my unfortunate accident, I was not able to do so. Actually, I had forgotten completely about it at the sound of Christine's voice, but since these two had reminded me, I resolved to scare them a bit.

"_The Phantom sees, the Phantom knows…."_

Andre almost jumped into Firmin's arms. I stifled a laugh at the scene.

"_Did you not think that I could hear what both of you speak about me?" _I once again threw my voice in their direction.

"P-p-please," Firmin stuttered. "We didn't know that"-

"_Silence!" _I shouted. Then, I thought that perhaps I could have them help me find Christine. _"I may forgive you after all. Where is Mademoiselle Daae?"_

"She went home", Firmin answered.

"_Ahhh, I see. Forgive me my dear managers, but who did she leave with?"_

"The Raoul de Chagny."

"_Of course, thank you, dear sirs. I assume that my salary will be due in a few days… hmm?"_

Andre cleared his throat, "Oh, uh, yes sir… We were just about to pay it."

However, I had a moment to consider this. What would be the point in having them pay me something that I would not be able to receive? I knew that as long as I remained in that cat form, I would not be able to receive it.

"_Don't bother with it this month. You haven't done anything to anger me this month, so you will be rewarded. Don't expect this often." _I knew that it seemed so out of character for me, but it was all I could do to catch up to my Christine.

They nodded. Firmin spotted me. He shouted at me, though he didn't realize who he was shouting at. "Andre, get the broom! Shoo, you vermin!"

Before I could reason with the situation, I scrambled away from them, meowing with fright. _They are going to hurt poor Erik! _I thought in cowardice. _The very managers that he had under his thumb are going to hurt him!_

Finding an opening, I leaped into the bitter cold of the night. My black fur hardly kept me warm and I began shivering. I looked back and saw the lights slowly dim in the opera house. Turning my head, I saw before me were a few street lamps burning. Christine's house was only a matter of blocks away.

I remembered her tender care for animals. When she was younger, she had once owned a cat. It had been a crippled little thing. Her father was about to turn it away, but she was determined to nurse it back to health. Once she did, she had given it to a friend of hers who had desperately wanted a cat.

Perhaps she could do the same for me, except, of course, giving me away.

With that, I stepped away from the Garnier. The light there was dimming, but Christine's lamplight kept burning.

**I'm sorry if you think this idea sucks, but this was actually inspired by my friend's cat. His name is Sparky. See, he kept having all these characteristics of Erik and I thought "No, this cat CANNOT be called 'Sparky'- that name is too demeaning!" Then I almost accidentially called him Erik. It was sad really. So, if you're like "What characteristics?" you'll see throughout the rest of this story.**

**Right now my story priorities are "Mirror Image" (which is in the Hunger Games archive) and "COUNT UP WITH ERIK". Considering that "COUNT UP" doesn't take me that long to write, all you'll need to worry about is "Mirror Image". My crossovers come last in the lineup, so this would be updated more frequently than those. Oh yes, and "Specter of the Theater" is on my priorities list too, even though no one really reviews it, which makes me sad *tear***

**Oh! And speaking of reviews! That would SOOO make my day to see reviews for this! Thank you! Hope you thought it was funny so far!**


	2. Author's Note

**PLEASE READ**

**Okay, so before I reply to the reviews I got for this, I would like to say that I will let you guys give me ideas for how Erik actually GETS into Christine's house. **

**Yes, I'm getting a little writer's block on how Erik gets in Christine's house. Well, I have like one idea, but I need a few different scenarios that will end up NOT working. **

**So if you guys will give me inspiration, then I would really love and appreciate it! Thanks so much!**

**So here's the review replies!**

**Thaovyphantran: Ha! Raoul should be a mouse! Then Erik could catch him and well, I don't know if he'd want to eat him- maybe just kill him. But I don't know if Christine would be too happy with that. Oh well.**

**nannyandpotocrazy: Sometimes, I feel too lazy to log in too :)**** I'm a comical genius? Yay! I feel so loved! And yeah, Erik is a cute cat, huh?**

**(To the anonymous reviewer that didn't put a name) : I didn't intentionally make it like the _Emperor's New Groove_. It just kind of came in my head after I wrote that. I'm so glad you noticed!**

**CourtneyRBowman: I'm glad you enjoyed the first chapter! :D**

**TheScarletIbis: Cats are really awesome! That's why Erik is one! :P By the way, I couldn't help but notice your penname. Does it happen to be based off the short story with the same name, or is it something completely different?**

**Axelion the Vampire Phantom: I will have a real update soon! I have no idea who Lenox and Malaya are, but I hope you will be satisfied with the next chapter! I'm once again so sorry that I didn't update, but maybe you could give me an idea for a scenario that Erik could try to get Christine into his house...?**

**So you know, I hope that I can update soon, but until then, IDEAS! Thanks! (and you can either review or PM me on those)**


	3. How to sneak into a sopranos house 1

**YAY! This chapter is finally up! *confetti falls* Major writer's block with this, but I had a lot of help from Christine Marie Jonasdotter, so that's really the only reason I got this up. Of course the reviews helped a lot too because I get to use all your lovely ideas! Muahahahahaha…. Kidding… sort of. **

**Am I insane? Well… besides the fact that I named my kitty flash drive Erik…**

**No, I'm not kidding. It's a flash drive and it's small and black and it looks like a kitty. It has yellow eyes so how could I possibly resist! Well… flash drive kitty Erik says hi.**

**Nannyandpotocrazy: I just feel bad with you calling me a comical genius and all. I'm not **_**that **_**good. Am I? By the way, your suggestion is altered a bit because… well you'll see.**

**Alice Kettle: Your suggestion shall also be used- though I will alter it a bit to work with the story :) I'm so glad that you enjoy the story so far! Hope you continue reading! Thanks!**

**Angelic-Reader: Wow… long review. Hehe… Where to begin? Thank you- I'm glad that my story has good potential! :D Um… yeah… there really was no way that I could write a short chapter. Well, I could have written a filler… darnet! I have a good filler idea too! Next time I'll remember that filler! Thanks for the reminder to add a short chapter after the author's note! I really hope you enjoy this a lot! I've worked very hard on it! Hehe… I have a plan for kitty Erik- that's all I'm going to tell you! And I did the brainstorming idea thanks! **

**Christine Marie Jonasdotter: I know I replied to you already and got all your help for this. Once again- thanks so much and I hope you enjoy this chapter! If I messed anything up- just let me know! Thanks!**

**woland666: I love your ideas! They shall be used! Yay! Thanks so much!**

**Aly: Oh! Cute kitty things! Don't you worry, Erik will be doing plenty of cute things! Yay! **

**Axelion the Vampire Phantom: Hmmm… all very good ideas. :D Oh, I think I forgot to mention that Christine hasn't married Raoul yet, so she's not on the estate. Actually, she's still in her apartment. But I am still using your ideas, though they may be a little altered. Hehe**

**I think I just realized that almost everyone said that Erik should meow. That idea will be used! And you know, after that you guys said different things so I'll use all of those and possibly a few of my own ideas… hehe.**

**BUT since I got so many ideas, I'm gonna have to split this chapter in two! Don't worry, I shall try to update that as soon as I can.**

**With that, let Erik's story begin! **

***breaks into random evil laughter***

***cough* um… sorry. Hehehe. ENJOY!**

_**Erik's POV**_

_**How to sneak into a Soprano's House without Really Trying Part 1**_

This now leaves me with my current situation, except, this is much worse than just being a cat. Oh no, this is much more demeaning than being a nose less cat.

After a few hours of wandering through the streets, I finally came across Christine's apartment. It was a small, humble abode, yet it was beautiful to a starving little creature such as myself.

Now I had a few options: I could have sneaked into the apartment unseen or I could try to get Christine to let me in. The first option would have only proved to be worthless, since I wouldn't be able to support myself well as a cat. Yes, I could have learned to hunt for mice and could have drank sewer water, but even though I was a cat in form, I was (and am) still a gentleman by nature.

That only left me with the second option. The only problem was how to get Christine to let an accursed little beast inside her only place of sanctuary. Though she did have a soft spot for animals, there was no way she would let me in. She had screamed at my face when I was a man, I would look much more repulsive as a cute little adorable – nose less cat.

I sat there in the road for a while, just staring at the apartment for a while. What could cats do that catch human's attention?

I paced up and down the road, trying to think of how to get into Christine's apartment. In truth, it should not be that hard to get into her home, but something just did not seem right about this whole thing.

Of course, there was nothing right with me being a cat.

I sighed and made my way towards the apartment.

I sat looking at the doorstep and stared the doors. Then I did the first thing that came to mind.

I died.

I stood on my hind legs and put a paw to my chest as I yowled in pain. Dramatically, I crashed to the ground and cried again. After a few minutes, I heard footsteps rush to the door and I stuck out my tongue before I heard the click of the door.

"Oh!" I heard an unfamiliar voice cry. Who was this? It definitely was not my Christine.

I felt a foot nudge my small crumpled body before I heard the woman scowl, "Nasty vermin should not be on my doorstep."

Before I could do anything, I felt her foot again, only this time I opened my eyes to find that I was soaring through the air. I looked back and saw a woman in her late forties wearing a look of shock on her face. As I fell to the side of the road, I gave her a wicked smile and winked. Quickly, she rushed back to the door and shut it behind her.

Slowly, I stood on my feet again. I almost collapsed to the ground once more when I felt a spasm of pain throughout my back leg. However, I knew that Christine would take care of me if I got in her house. She would never even know it was me so she would care for my back leg.

I limped to the apartment again. I realized that Christine obviously was not the only resident here. Her Mama Valerius had passed away the sometime ago so I had assumed that meant that Christine would be living on her own. Yet that did not seem to be the case.

I found a pipe that lead to the second floor of the apartment. I gave another wicked smile as the answer seemed to be staring me in the face. I leaped and grabbed onto the pipe for dear life. My leg seemed to protest, but I ignored it. I would be well once I was reunited with my love.

Slowly, I climbed up the pipe until I reached the first window of the second floor. I looked into the window to see the same woman who kicked me to the side of the road. I flattened myself against the wall next to the window when I saw that she was walking towards the window. My breath stopped when the steps ceased at the window. A moment of silence ensued. Suddenly, the glass pane swung out and hit me in the head. I felt so dizzy afterward that I lost my balance and found myself falling to the ground.

My eyes had momentarily closed as I fell. The rush of air almost felt comforting to me.

That was until I landed in a rose bush.

**Yes, I did end it on that. Yes, I realize that the chapter was short :P at least it was a chapter. Part two will come up soon. I just need to organize how I can do these ideas, but the ones I put in this chapter- I love them! Thanks so much to all of you who gave me these ones! And to all of you who are like "Where's mine?" it's coming in the next chapter. Muahahahahaha**

**So… look forward to part two and until then…**

**REVIEW! Thanks!**


	4. Done

**Eh, okay I think I'm done with this story. It's been fun, but my inspiration has been lost.**

**Not to mention, I think everyone forgot about it to be honest. **

**So I'm done with it. I really had no idea where I was going with it to begin with and I still am clueless as to what to do. And I had written a chapter for this before, but it had been deleted by the internet (curse you internet!)**

**Anyway, I'm so sorry that I'm doing this, but I just don't know where to go from here. **

**Lot's of Love to all of you who still remember this story,**

**~Maxniss**


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